The Church was made for spiritual war From KLI's monthly newsletter! Click here to become a partner.
You know, the Greek word that Jesus borrowed from Greek culture for the Church is “ekklessia.” He first introduced it in Matthew 16:18 saying ….”I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.”
The church has a government established by Jesus Christ. In fact, the origin of ekklessia sheds light on this and it’s purpose. Prior to Jesus choosing to use this term it was used by the Greeks. According to Wikipedia, it was actually the principal assembly of democracy in Athens. It was open to all who qualified for citizenship and was responsible for declaring war, military strategy and electing government officials.
So, the historical purpose of the term translated “church” was to:
When you understand this and combine that with another word that Jesus borrowed from the Greek/Phoenician seafaring community, apostolos. Then you will understand the church’s call to spiritual war and some of the reactions in Jesus day. You see they understood EXACTLY what those words meant in their culture.
Apostolos first referred to the leader of a convoy, later the commander of an invasion force and finally it referred to the role of an ambassador general. It was like Pontus Pilate was the ambassador general sent to represent Rome in Jerusalem. Jesus basically called his 12 disciples ambassadors, admirals and or generals. They were messengers sent to represent God’s government on earth as it is in heaven.
Why? Revelation 12 provides context. It describes the spiritual war in heaven which spilled on to earth. It says Satan went to make war with the remnant of God’s seed and those who obey Him and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.
Armies Exist to Project Power on Behalf of Their Government
That is what the Navy War College taught me. Ephesians 3:10 says, “to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places…,” Principalities and powers refers to demonic governmental offices.
So how does the Lord project power today?
You know, the Greek word that Jesus borrowed from Greek culture for the Church is “ekklessia.” He first introduced it in Matthew 16:18 saying ….”I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.”
The church has a government established by Jesus Christ. In fact, the origin of ekklessia sheds light on this and it’s purpose. Prior to Jesus choosing to use this term it was used by the Greeks. According to Wikipedia, it was actually the principal assembly of democracy in Athens. It was open to all who qualified for citizenship and was responsible for declaring war, military strategy and electing government officials.
So, the historical purpose of the term translated “church” was to:
- Govern which requires making decisions
- Declare war and develop strategy
When you understand this and combine that with another word that Jesus borrowed from the Greek/Phoenician seafaring community, apostolos. Then you will understand the church’s call to spiritual war and some of the reactions in Jesus day. You see they understood EXACTLY what those words meant in their culture.
Apostolos first referred to the leader of a convoy, later the commander of an invasion force and finally it referred to the role of an ambassador general. It was like Pontus Pilate was the ambassador general sent to represent Rome in Jerusalem. Jesus basically called his 12 disciples ambassadors, admirals and or generals. They were messengers sent to represent God’s government on earth as it is in heaven.
Why? Revelation 12 provides context. It describes the spiritual war in heaven which spilled on to earth. It says Satan went to make war with the remnant of God’s seed and those who obey Him and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.
Armies Exist to Project Power on Behalf of Their Government
That is what the Navy War College taught me. Ephesians 3:10 says, “to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places…,” Principalities and powers refers to demonic governmental offices.
So how does the Lord project power today?
1Church1Day inspired by David's Plan in the Tabernacle of David A study of Ephesians 6:12-18 reveals our spiritual weapons and only one of those is offensive. It is the Word of God which is the sword of the spirit.
Psalm 68:11 says, “The Lord gave the word and great was the company of those who proclaimed it.”
One of the primary ways God shares His heart concerning a person, a people or a nation is through His prophets. Their job is to represent Him and share His word and His will concerning an issue. That is why 2 Chronicles 20:20 says, “… Believe in the Lord your God, and you shall be established; believe His prophets, and you shall prosper.”
So, the word we get from the Lord is the word we are to proclaim? This is why Paul admonishes in 1 Timothy 1:18 “This charge I commit to you, son Timothy, according to the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you may wage the good warfare…”
We are to “war” or do spiritual warfare by proclaiming God’s word.
How Jesus Rules
Psalm 110:1-2 – “The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool. The Lord shall send the rod of Your strength out of Zion. Rule in the midst of Your enemies!”
The word translated “rod” in the Hebrew is 4x more frequently translated tribe. A tribe is made up of families; people. God intends to rule through His people. How? Psalm 68:11! The Lord, our Lord, who is the King of kings and the Lord of lords, gives us a word and we are called to corporately proclaim that word.
That is also why Jesus teaches us to pray in Matthew 6:10 “Your kingdom come, Your will be done.”
God’s Word Creates
Understanding Hebrews 11:3 is critical. It says, “By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.” Proverbs 18:21 teaches us that death and life are in the power of the tongue. Genesis 1 teaches us that we are made in God’s image. If God created and framed the world through His word, then so do we. This truth impacts our lives personally and it also applies corporately.
We can frame our world, our city’s world and even impact a nation through strategic prayer. Strategic prayer is apostolic prayer. Apostolic/strategic prayer is made up of decrees determined by God to be proclaimed through His people.
We Can Increase our Power Through Agreement
Matthew 18:19, Deuteronomy 32:30 and Leviticus 26:8 all teach us that there is exponential power in agreement. When God is with us, five can chase a 100 and 100 can chase 10,000.
This understanding provides some of the motivation and foundation for the design in the strategy. The 1Church1Day strategy is a strategic process designed with God’s will and His principles in mind to help God’s leaders do a better job of developing effective strategy and more effective teamwork in order to position them to fulfill their destiny in Christ.
How Can You Take Advantage of this Truth?
Psalm 68:11 says, “The Lord gave the word and great was the company of those who proclaimed it.”
One of the primary ways God shares His heart concerning a person, a people or a nation is through His prophets. Their job is to represent Him and share His word and His will concerning an issue. That is why 2 Chronicles 20:20 says, “… Believe in the Lord your God, and you shall be established; believe His prophets, and you shall prosper.”
So, the word we get from the Lord is the word we are to proclaim? This is why Paul admonishes in 1 Timothy 1:18 “This charge I commit to you, son Timothy, according to the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you may wage the good warfare…”
We are to “war” or do spiritual warfare by proclaiming God’s word.
How Jesus Rules
Psalm 110:1-2 – “The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool. The Lord shall send the rod of Your strength out of Zion. Rule in the midst of Your enemies!”
The word translated “rod” in the Hebrew is 4x more frequently translated tribe. A tribe is made up of families; people. God intends to rule through His people. How? Psalm 68:11! The Lord, our Lord, who is the King of kings and the Lord of lords, gives us a word and we are called to corporately proclaim that word.
That is also why Jesus teaches us to pray in Matthew 6:10 “Your kingdom come, Your will be done.”
God’s Word Creates
Understanding Hebrews 11:3 is critical. It says, “By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.” Proverbs 18:21 teaches us that death and life are in the power of the tongue. Genesis 1 teaches us that we are made in God’s image. If God created and framed the world through His word, then so do we. This truth impacts our lives personally and it also applies corporately.
We can frame our world, our city’s world and even impact a nation through strategic prayer. Strategic prayer is apostolic prayer. Apostolic/strategic prayer is made up of decrees determined by God to be proclaimed through His people.
We Can Increase our Power Through Agreement
Matthew 18:19, Deuteronomy 32:30 and Leviticus 26:8 all teach us that there is exponential power in agreement. When God is with us, five can chase a 100 and 100 can chase 10,000.
This understanding provides some of the motivation and foundation for the design in the strategy. The 1Church1Day strategy is a strategic process designed with God’s will and His principles in mind to help God’s leaders do a better job of developing effective strategy and more effective teamwork in order to position them to fulfill their destiny in Christ.
How Can You Take Advantage of this Truth?
- Read God’s word and pray daily to hear and discover God’s word for yourself.
- Listen to God’s prophets and pray God’s will revealed through their word.
- Join us on Thursdays https://www.1church1day.org/blog/the-call-to-pray-for-the-nation
- Download the 1Church1Day app, sign up to pray, pray the decrees and alerts
- If you are a leader, implement the 1Church1Day strategy in your church, network, city, region or state.
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